Dance In The Rain
by Zyii
Summary: 'No matter what happens you will always be my love'. Having taken a wrong turn Hermione's life hasn't turned out the way she wanted, but when she decides it's time to get out will she be able to find her way back to the one she loves or will she be caught up in more drama and danger? [Draco/Hermione]
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any characters associated with it.**

**AN: First time writing Dramione on this website. Having written it for over two years on another site, I took a break for a while. Have had this story in my mind for a while; will have Weasley bashing in it and possibly Dumbledore bashing. Probably riddled with plot holes and clichés - you have been warned! ~ Zyii**

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**Edited: 12/08/14**

**Chapter One – 'One Step Forward, One Step Back'**

Narcissa Malfoy was an almost happy woman. She lived in a world that wasn't in fear of an evil tyrant, she hadn't gone to prison and she hadn't died. Her family had paid its price and righted all wrongs, the name Malfoy was no longer feared as it once was, and no longer did people look upon them with disgust etched upon their faces. It was the dawn of a new age, the next generation were the ones leading the Wizarding world into a new era. Pureblood supremacy was now a thing of the past and those who couldn't bow down to the changes happening around them were now shunned by all society. They had been fools believing in what Voldemort had taught them, their fear for muggles was detrimental to their behaviour towards them. Muggles should be feared to an extent, if they were ever to find out about the Wizarding world the result would be astronomically bad, yet there were some good sides to the muggles.

Some of their technology was vastly advanced from that in the Wizarding world and the increase in muggle born witches and wizards had helped boost the Wizarding population to new heights. New blood was now better, it was obvious that years of arrange marriages between pureblood families had weakened generation after generation. Some were too stupid to recognise the signs but Narcissa was no fool, in fact she'd had the highest grades when she'd attended Hogwarts. She saw the signs and realised the meaning behind them, this was a new day where purebloods and muggle-borns had to exist together equally or the world could plunge into another war like the one that had recently ended.

She was not however, going to start preaching her ideas to the masses, nor was she going to suggest that arrange marriages between purebloods and muggle-borns were the way forward. It was just that she had been thinking a lot lately and she was grateful for the cultural shock she had experienced in the years following the war. To think that her past had been embedded in her since she was a child by her parents, it made her wonder how different her life would have been had she been born to someone else. She had realised her mistakes of the past and hoped that she never fell for them again. She was trying to move on from her past and make herself a better person; she had never been evil, only fearful and trapped.

She couldn't blame her husband forever, though he was one of the forces behind her being trapped within the dark arts. His destiny had been set out before him by his Father. When his Father had died, Lucius had still been in school and he'd had to pick up the pieces and become the head of the family. He was vulnerable and during his vulnerability Voldemort had struck, his influence had forced Lucius to submit at an early stage and he'd been trapped a long with Narcissa ever since.

Then came Draco, her pride and joy. She'd always wanted to be a Mother and always wanted to have more children than just Draco. However, upon Draco's birth, they'd been told in no uncertain terms that any future children they had would be given to Voldemort as claim for their loyalty. He wanted an army he could control, and what better army to control than one you'd had since birth. It was a notion that stopped Narcissa from ever considering having another child; she could not subject any of her offspring to a mad man.

She had doted on Draco while Lucius had been firm and strict with him. She understood Lucius's behaviour but wished that he had at least shown a little bit of emotion. Draco could have used that growing up, still it was no matter, his Father was showing Draco his emotion now.

There were so many things that Narcissa wished she could undo from Draco's life. Perhaps if she'd been more observant she could have saved him from the horrors of his sixth year, or the nightmares of his supposed seventh. Now though, Draco had changed his life around, upon completion of his N.E.W.T.s at Hogwarts he trained to be a healer and then opened his own private clinic that treated any patient regardless of species or wealth. The business was thriving, going above and beyond what St. Mungo's did. The clinic had its own apothecary/potions shop that was run by Professor Snape and Neville Longbottom, which helped a lot of people and bought in a lot of revenue.

The clinic wasn't his only profitable business, he also co-owned a private Wizarding club with Harry Potter and a chain of shops that combined wizard and muggle products with his school friend's; Blaise Zabini and Daphne Greengrass. He definitely wasn't short of money and his businesses were so profitable that Lucius couldn't fault him for not taking over the family business. However, Narcissa could still see that he wasn't happy and that the past sometimes haunted him.

Though she couldn't change the past, now that the dust had settled and the Wizarding world was moving on with life, she had but one goal; to see Draco happy. He was miserable, he overworked and he was alone. Yet she remembered a time during his repeated seventh year when he'd been blissfully happy. Narcissa had never seen him as happy as she'd seen him then. Then his happiness had ended and he had come crashing down. It had all happened because of a girl, not just any ordinary girl. It could never be an ordinary girl that bought Draco Malfoy to his knees. On no, the girl that had made his eyes burn with happiness and then dulled his life was none other than Hermione Granger.

Three years had passed since the end of the war, three years since Voldemort had been defeated and Harry had come back from the dead and things appeared a lot different than they had in school. Harry had not ended up with Ginny like many had assumed, she had in fact been offered a position with the Holyhead Harpies and was immensely enjoying her time as a professional Quiddich player. In the year following the war, Harry had grown exceedingly close to Luna Lovegood and by the time of the first anniversary of the war, they had already become a couple. It was vastly due to Luna's influence that Harry was able to let the past rest in the past and willingly give his friendship to Draco Malfoy. Their business partnership had only blossomed with time and although they occasionally fought like old enemies, they were now close friends.

However as most of those from Hogwarts rose up to exciting challenges and job opportunities, Hermione Granger's life wasn't going as planned. The plan she'd originally had and the people she planned hadn't seemed important and had disappeared from her mind with each passing year. She found herself in a dead end job within the ministry that had no room for improvement or promotion and was shackled to a man whom she felt no feeling towards.

After graduating from Hogwarts she ended up in a relationship with Ron, it had been a given, something that was expected. Her life before Ron was blurry at best, she knew she'd been happy but she couldn't remember why. However in recent years her relationship had become strained, their relationship was rocky and it only became more bitter and twisted. It seemed that even with all the recognition for their parts played during the war and the honours and money they received, Ron still felt unjustified as a hero. Hermione now feared being in the same room as him, he belittled her and verbally abused her and she worried that he'd one day hit her.

It was a far cry from the Ronald Weasley she knew at school but if she really thought long and hard about it, she'd realise that the way Ron behaved now, wasn't far off the way he behaved at school. Hermione felt tired of the way her life was going, and she felt emotionally drained under the strain of living with Ron. They didn't even share a bedroom for goodness sake; he said she distracted him from his sleep. Still Hermione would not be defeated and tried to make her relationship with Ron work.

Now though as she stands watching her _boyfriend_ and another woman do things that should not be seen in public, she realised how much time she had wasted. This environment was killing her and she needed a release. She turned around and quickly began packing, she hoped to be out before he could act rashly but she was not so lucky.

'Where are you going?' he demanded.

'Away from you' she replied, her resolve not leaving her.

'You can't, I forbid it. Don't you forget that you are mine, you will marry me soon or I will make sure they all die!' he shouted.

She flinched at his tone of voice 'that threat might have worked all those years ago but it won't be enough to keep me here now. I know what you do when you're out late 'working'. How many women have there been Ronald? How many double standards have you set?' she asked.

He stepped forward and slapped her hard across the face, 'there have been many women and there will be many more. Never doubt that you don't belong to me, you will be a nice quiet wife and I will get my kicks where I can' he said.

She was shocked and took a step away from him, 'I don't belong to you any longer' she said.

He grabbed her and thrust her into the wall, she felt his hands cut into her arms no doubt creating bruises and her head felt a little dizzy from where she'd hit the wall.

'You are mine, my trophy for fighting in the war. I got what everyone else wanted and I'm never letting you go' he said.

'Love doesn't work that way Ron, love is a partnership, a friendship. What happened to you? I don't recognise you anymore' she cried.

'You spent too much time with Harry, Luna and _him._ You should have been focusing all your efforts into my happiness. I needed to stop their influence over you. I forbade you from seeing them for your own good. Aren't you happier now you haven't seen them in over two years, aren't our lives better?' he bellowed.

'You forbid me? Is that why I have a hole in my heart that cannot be filled. What did you do to me Ronald? If I find out you used magic on me you'll be so sorry! No, my life is a living hell; I can't believe I suffered through it for so long. I didn't think I had anything to live for but I was wrong, I can live for myself and I'm going to' she said.

She managed to push him off her and she scrambled for her bag, she felt something smash against the back of her head and it sent her off course.

'You'll regret this if you walk away from me Hermione, I'll make sure they all pay for your disloyalty. Maybe once you see their dead bodies you'll realise that we belong together' he screamed, spit flying from his mouth.

'Goodbye Ronald' she whispered as she violently apparated from the house, her bag forgotten on the floor, the only thing she managed to take with her was her wand.

She must have unconsciously thought when she apparated because when she touched ground again; it wasn't somewhere she expected to be.

Narcissa was drinking tea with Lucius in the green room when the wards started shaking violently and a crack of lightning appeared right in the centre of the room. Lucius was already up in front of her, his wand out, ready to defend them. When the lightning disappeared and the smoke cleared, they were both shocked to see the body of Hermione Granger on their carpet.

She was unconscious, had a head wound on the back of her head, and severe bruising on her upper arms. Before Lucius had time to realise that there wasn't a threat, Narcissa was already on her knees before Hermione, shouting for house elves to come and assist her. Lucius watched on as Narcissa and the elves tended to Hermione, his own heart thumped in his chest as he looked at her injuries and wondered what caused them. None of them had seen more than a glimpse of her in the past two years, and he knew that her disappearance of sorts had been hard on a lot of people, especially Draco.

As he watched Narcissa and the elves take Hermione upstairs, he knew that he should be contacting his son. Perhaps he'd see to it that Potter and Severus were called upon as well.

Draco had been having a rather busy day at work; he spent the majority of his time at the private clinic that he had named 'The Grange'. Most people didn't realise the resemblance to the name of the clinic and the last name of Hermione but that suited him just fine. Two years later and he found that his heart still belonged to her, he'd tried to forget her and even tried dating other people but it just wasn't the same and he'd given up deluding himself into thinking he could have a normal life without her.

It was some comfort that she hadn't just left him but Harry and the others as well. At least they were all in the same boat, he just wish he knew where she was and why of all people she'd chosen Weasley.

It was just after lunch when he was sitting down to open the mail that had been delivered earlier when a rather frazzled looking Harry ran into his office. Draco frowned looking up from a letter from his Father that he had yet to open and up to Harry's face.

'What?' he asked.

'I got a letter from your Father' said Harry.

'So have I, I was just about to open it' said Draco.

'No need, we have to get to Malfoy Manor immediately' said Harry urgently.

Draco glanced at him 'should I be worried? Is someone in danger?' he asked.

'Someone apparated into the Manor' said Harry.

'But that's impossible' replied Draco with disbelief.

'Not entirely impossible' replied Harry.

'I don't understand why this is cause for us to rush there' said Draco.

'They need medical help' said Harry.

Draco looked at him sharply 'who apparated into the Manor?' he asked.

'Hermione' replied Harry.

Draco's mind was in turmoil as he followed Harry out of the clinic. Two years without a word from her and then Hermione magically apparated into Malfoy Manor? How is that possible? Worse yet, Harry said she needed medical attention, what had happened to her in the years they'd be parted from each other? He should be mad at her, hell he should hate her but all he felt was fear, worry and an overwhelming sense of relief.

They arrived at the Manor quicker than he thought possible, they were met at the door by an anxious Neville, who announced that Severus had just arrived and everyone was upstairs tending to Hermione.

Draco flew up the stairs like a mad man possessed, Harry hot on his heels. He burst into the room and his eyes lay sight on the girl he'd been missing for two years. She looked terrible. It wasn't just the head wound or the bruises on her arms, her face was a deathly pale colour and she was covered in sweat.

'What happened to her?' asked Harry.

'Apart from the physical signs that she was in a struggle – the large wound to her head and various cuts -, the amount of energy she used apparating directly into the Manor, her magical powers have been bound, she's had several compulsion charms laid on her and it seems that her mind has been raped by someone completely incompetent' said Severus gravely.

'What can we do?' asked Harry worriedly.

'Draco, tend to her wounds. Lucius go to the Ministry, you need to get Minister Shacklebolt to send out a search warrant for Ronald Weasley, Harry, round up all Hermione's friends; Luna, Ginny, Lupin, anyone she had a strong connection to before she disappeared, she's going to need everyone's support. Neville, I need all the ingredients on this list, you know what to do. Narcissa there is a house elf called Winky that works at Hogwarts, she always shared a strong bond with Hermione, see if you can get her here' said Severus seriously.

As everyone began moving a gust of strong wind swirled around the room causing everyone to close their eyes against it. When the wind stopped and the people in the room were able to open their eyes once more it was to find a gnarly looking creature standing next to Hermione's bed and looking over her protectively.

'Who are you? What are you doing?' demanded Severus as he rounded on the creature.

The gnarly creature didn't flinch away from the tone of Severus but did turn towards the room's occupants 'I am Eppy. I worked with Hermione at the Ministry. I am half-elf half-goblin, and I am bound to Hermione and her future household. When she didn't turn up for work I was worried, when I felt a painful twang through the bond I have with her I searched out her magic and followed the trail, it led me here. What happened to my Mistress?' asked the creature politely.

The room stood shocked for several moments that the creature before them could speak so politely and clearly. Elves were used to staying in the shadows while goblins rarely associated with people, it would have been hard for Eppy to find work anywhere. That he'd managed to bond with Hermione showed great courage or a foresight of what was to come.

No one seemed to be able to get Eppy to leave Hermione's side so they gave up, leaving to attend their tasks and left Hermione in the care of both Draco and Eppy.

Draco dutifully tended to Hermione's wounds, all the while; his single thought was that she'd wake up.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I do not own Harry Potter.**

**Chapter Two**

Draco watched over Hermione as she remained forever unaware of the world around her. Draco had refused to leave her bedside, his mind had been drinking up her appearance like a starved man and he wished she would wake up so he could tell her how much she meant to him. Of course he also wanted to rant and shout at her for leaving him but presently his worry outweighed his anger. It wasn't long before Harry was coming back after completing Severus's instructions and the Manor quickly became abuzz with the noise of people arriving to offer their services. If Draco had managed to leave Hermione's side, he would have been amazed by the sight he saw.

Narcissa was definitely amazed and allowed herself several moments to stop and stand in shock before she remembered her social training and jumped up to help everyone. She was amazed by how many people had come, she knew Hermione was special but she had forgotten how many others thought Hermione was special and how many lives she had touched throughout her life. The muggle-born war hero had a lot of friend's and they were currently all following the orders of Severus Snape. They'd set up a make shift potions lab in one of the rooms off the main corridor, one side was set up with cauldrons and Britain's top potions makers were hard at work under the watchful eye of Severus.

The other side was devoted to Neville and the ingredients needed. Though his skill in potions was well known as being terrible, his knowledge of plants was superior to most, as was his ability to prepare ingredients for potions. Elsewhere, in the Manor's library, were Lucius, Lupin and Harry. The Malfoy's boasted an impressive library and the men were hard at work trying to find out what compulsion charms had been placed on Hermione.

Harry had been struggling to comprehend what had happened to Hermione. He never understood what had made her choose Ron at the end of their seventh year, as it had been clear to everyone how well her and Draco were suited to each other. However, if Hermione could put up with seven years of blindly following him without question, then he could let her have her secrets for now.

"The level of power used on those compulsion charms could only have been performed by two people and they're both dead" said Lucius gravely.

"You're referring to Voldemort or Dumbledore I assume" said Lupin.

At the mention of those names Harry's head shot up "I bet it was Voldemort" he said menacingly.

"Now wait a minute, if it had been Voldemort, the spells would have worn off by now, besides Hermione never spent an extended amount of time in his presence. The only way they'd last was if Voldemort had created an heir and they were topping up the charms" said Lupin, looking at Lucius for conformation.

"I can say with a hundred percent certainty that Voldemort didn't father any children. He wasn't even functional in that respect" said Lucius.

"So that leaves Dumbledore" said Lupin gravely.

"But" began Harry.

Lucius sighed "please use your head Potter, Dumbledore was a master in secrets and manipulation. If anyone could hide a family it would be him. I'm not saying it was him, however for compulsion charms to continue past the death of the original caster, a member of the direct line of said castor, must step in to take over".

"You're suggesting that Dumbledore had a secret family" said Harry.

"At this point anything is possible" said Lupin.

Harry sighed "how do we even remove the spells?"

"Severus gave us a general idea, we're looking for charms that radiate glows of; orange, pink and green. From there we can narrow down the choices using what we know of Hermione and her behaviour patterns. Then it shouldn't be too hard to determine what charms were placed on her" said Lucius.

"It's going to be a long day isn't it" said Harry.

Somehow, the news that war hero Hermione Granger had been injured had been leaked to the Daily Prophet. The silver lining was that the article had actually been tasteful and reported the facts instead of lies.

It obviously hadn't been written by Rita Skeeter – she was lucky if she found work now that she'd been caught as an unregistered animagus.

It was good publicity if it helped Hermione. It was good fortune that the article on Hermione coincided with the Ministry's publication of the warrant for Ron's arrest. Seeing one war hero injured and another up for arrest shocked the Wizarding public.

It wasn't long after that announcement that Molly Weasley apparated to Malfoy Manor. Though she had struggled to accept that the Malfoy's were once again prominent leaders of society in a good way, she was thankful that they were caring for Hermione in a way that she no longer could. She couldn't believe that Ron might have had something to do with Hermione's condition, however, she did understand the dangers of a prewett temper and it seemed that Ron had inherited it in spades.

Upon arrival, Molly was accosted by an irate looking Snape.

"Do you think it's wise that you're here considering present situations?" growled Snape.

Molly paled "I would never have raised my son to behave the way he has, I have come to offer my help" she said.

"Well I doubt Draco will let you near Hermione but I can't speak for what the others will do" he sneered.

Narcissa huffed in frustration and rescued the frightened woman from Severus, glaring at him in the process.

"Don't mind Severus, he's just worried even if he doesn't show it. He owes a lot of Miss Granger, we all do. Now as hard as it is to admit your son could have done anything terrible, do you have any clue as to where he might have disappeared to?" asked Narcissa kindly.

Molly sighed "the moment that arrest warrant was made public, he would have been shunned by the family. He couldn't have gone to Harry and he doesn't have any other close friends. You know they were all given awards, money and a house as thanks after the war. Both Harry and Hermione have plenty of money left but I know Ron had to move in with Hermione because he'd gambled all his money away" said Molly.

"Do not fret too much Molly, I'm sure the Ministry will find him soon" said Narcissa.

"He is my son and I will always love him but I never understood where his jealousy came from; jealousy from his brothers, his friend's, and his peers. Nothing ever seemed good enough and just thinking of all the times he pulled the wool over my eyes and pretended to play the victim, it just makes my skin crawl!" she said.

"Out of seven children, one bad penny isn't that bad, you could have done a lot worse" said Narcissa sympathetically as she remembered all the things from her past that were bad.

The two women found solace with each other. Indeed if Molly were to be stuck in a room with a Malfoy, she'd rather it be Narcissa now that she realised there was nothing about her to fear. She promised herself that she wouldn't let the prewett temper control her and was determined to help Hermione and see her son receive justice.

"Please wake up, please wake up" murmured Draco, though he knew it was pointless. Hermione wouldn't wake up until she had healed from both emotional and physical injuries. He watched from his place at her bedside as Luna Lovegood bustled around taking Hermione's vitals and making sure everything was correct. Aside from Draco, Luna was the best healer out there and Draco refused to have anyone but the best treat Hermione.

Seeing the arrest for Ron was like a punch in the face screaming "I hurt Hermione and got away with it! Draco hoped the bastard got punished, if not by the Ministry then by himself and anyone else that joined the queue. At least the wound on Hermione's head was healing nicely and the small cuts and abrasions had almost disappeared into nothing.

Draco was just contemplating how long Hermione would remain this way when Harry burst through this way when Harry burst through the room, swiftly followed by the presence of Lucius, Lupin and Severus.

"We worked it out" said Harry breathlessly.

Draco perked up at this; it was tragic to helplessly watch the one you loved without being able to do anything about it. He hoped the presence of these four meant something good was about to happen.

Seeing the arrest for Ron was like a punch in the face screaming; 'I hurt Hermione and got away with it'. Draco hoped the bastard got punished, if not by the Ministry then by himself and anyone else who wanted to beat up Ron. At least the wound on Hermione's head was healing nicely and the small cuts and abrasions had almost disappeared into nothing.

Draco was just contemplating how long Hermione would remain this way when Harry burst through the door, swiftly followed by Lucius, Remus and Severus.

"We worked it out" said Harry breathlessly.

Draco perked up at this; it was tragic to watch the one you loved without being able to do anything about it. The presence of these four signalled something good and Draco allowed himself a pause to relax in. Draco knew they'd been researching for days now and was determined that any news given would be good news. He took in the tired expressions of those around him and realised just how hard they had been working round the clock. Harry especially looked incredibly drained and scruffy. First things first after Hermione was cured, Draco would make sure that the men before his got some well-deserved rest.

"So what did you discover?" asked Draco.

"There are four spells upon Hermione and upon further inspection we found one on you, one on Harry and one of her boss at work.

Draco was outraged at these turn of events but before he could kick up a fuss, Harry intervened.

"I know how furious you feel Draco and how it feels like you've been violated but our top priority is making Hermione better, then we can focus on getting the one responsible brought to justice".

"Harry's right" said Remus.

"Now we've already removed the spell from Hermione's boss. We're going to remove the spells from you and Harry before we attempt to remove Miss Granger's" said Severus.

"The spells on Hermione are a little stronger and we're going to need the help of Cissa and Molly to break them" said Lucius without a sneer to Molly's name.

Before Draco could ask what spell was upon him and what had to happen for it to be removed, Severus had shoved an unpleasant potion down his throat and Lucius started waving his wand in a complex manner. Looking out the corner of his eye, he saw that Harry was in the same position. Draco had to close his eyes from the onslaught of magic he was feeling, then he felt pain like a bee sting and it all stopped. He felt refreshed and had a burning desire to follow Hermione for the rest of his life. He looked over at Harry and saw him slumped in a chair, his head in his hands.

Draco looked up at the three men before him "explain please".

Lucius sighed looking at his son sympathetically "you were charmed to let Hermione go, to not pursue her or seek out. We guessed that your presence in Hermione's life was getting in the way, they needed you out of the way and we can only guess that your lack of interest in her after you broke up, helped her transition into being Ron's girlfriend".

"We're only speculating of course but it seems a logical course of action" said Remus.

Draco nodded not quite believing what had happened.

"What about me?" asked Harry almost too quietly.

His tone of voice made the others look at him in concern, he didn't look well.

"Well you had a charm on you that made you believe Ron over Hermione. It was probably at Ron's request that the friendship between you and Hermione became strained" said Severus.

"What's wrong Harry?" asked Remus.

"Is it possible that when you removed the charm that you also removed a memory charm?" asked Harry.

Severus looked at him suspiciously "it is possible".

"What do you remember Harry?" asked Remus softly.

"So many verbal lashings from Ron, he treated her so badly during our time at Hogwarts and hurt her so much. There were several times where he actually got physical. God I can see the pain now as he slaps her round the face. I'm a terrible friend, how could I forget all that? How could I leave her in his clutches?"

Draco was mortified by what he was hearing, how could they have all been so blind? Poor Hermione, had she known? Or had her memory of those occasions been wiped as well? There were so many questions and not enough answers, however before either Draco or Harry could feel worse for what had happened, the doors opened to reveal the presence of Cissa and Molly.

"We came as soon as we could" said Harry.

"So let us not stand around chatting, let's fix our girl first and then do the explaining" said Cissa.

Both Draco and Harry were asked to step away from Hermione's bed to give the five witches and wizards space; then after some hushed words spoken by Severus, some cries of outrage from Molly, and a barely concealed growl from Cissa, the five of them got to work.

At first it seemed like nothing was happening but then a mixture of colours started rising up from Hermione and her face contorted into one of pain. Oranges, greens, pinks and magentas flew up from Hermione's body and her back arched with the force of the magic charms being destroyed. When the chanting reached its peak, Hermione's body started convulsing and moaning, and Draco had to grip the sides of his chair tightly to override the desire to run and comfort Hermione.

It was a full fifteen minutes later the chanting stopped and the five, relaxed knowing their work was done, however it was a further half an hour later till Hermione finally came back to the living and opened her eyes. She was tired, everyone could see it and reluctantly the seven people in the room were convinced by Luna Lovegood that they needed their rest as much as Hermione did.

Luna even persuaded Draco to leave Hermione's side for a moments rest – and that was saying something.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

**AN: **For those reading, I will try and update weekly, updates will come sooner depending on how much time I have to write :) ~ Zyii

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**Edited: 12/08/14**

**Chapter Three**

When she woke she was confused and disorientated. She felt like she'd been asleep for a century yet she didn't think much time had passed at all. The last thing she remembered was Ron and that thing he sullied their bed with.

Years of hate flew out of her as he mind cleared for the first time in a long while. She suddenly realised how much of her life she'd wasted on him, on Ron. She couldn't remember how she had ended up here and her mind seemed a jumble of things she couldn't remember and things that didn't make sense. It was like waking up as a new person trapped in the body of an old person, nothing made sense.

She could however – amongst the rumble of her mind – place where it was that she currently lay. It was hard not to notice the obvious tones of silver and green that coloured the room; that or the stuffed green dragon that sat on a nearby chair. She was at Malfoy Manor and that dragon had been a present bought for her when she had been dating Draco. It had been something to comfort her when Draco had been unable to.

Thinking of Draco filled her with bittersweet memories and emotions. She knew even now that her heart belonged to him but though her own actions she had lost him. Yet thinking on it now, there was no clear reason as to why they had parted ways.

_Speak of him and he shall appear_ she thought as Draco stepped into the room. However he was not alone and joining him was: his parents; Narcissa and Lucius, Luna, Harry, Neville, Remus and Snape. They obviously didn't want to overwhelm her but also all wanted to be present as things were unravelled. Had it been just one or two people then she wouldn't have worried so much but as there were so many people it made her panic slightly.

'What's going on?' she asked quietly.

'What do you remember?' asked Snape.

'Leaving Ron' she muttered.

Narcissa, bored of keeping her distance, moved to sit in the chair beside Hermione's bed and offered her a much needed glass of water. Afterwards she took Hermione's small hand in her own as a sign of comfort and waited for the gentlemen in the room to continue talking.

'You apparated into the Manor' said Lucius.

'That's impossible' said Hermione awestruck.

'Not impossible as you succeeded' said Narcissa.

'What happened to me?' asked Hermione.

'Darling, you arrived unconscious with a head wound and cuts all over. You gave my dear husband quite a shock' said Narcissa.

Hermione glanced meekly at Lucius whose face remained indifferent.

'Now there are a lot of people in this room that care for you. So you mustn't be angry at any of them for intruding' said Narcissa.

Hermione nodded.

'How are you feeling?' asked Harry.

'Sore, drained and confused…there are memories in my head that I don't remember' she whimpered.

'Miss Granger' said Snape sternly, then when she had focused on him he continued 'Hermione your mind has suffered abuse from the memory charm for a long time; six years in fact. Now we could not detect who cast the majority of these spells but the caster of some of the weaker ones trace back to Ronald Weasley. Furthermore we found several compulsion charms had been placed on you a long with a magic dampening spell. The magic dampening spell had been placed on you from the moment you started Hogwarts – clearly someone didn't want you to reach your full potential – and we suspect the compulsion charms were added over time' Snape paused to look at Hermione, making sure she was taking everything in and hadn't faltered before he continued.

'Considering how much power you had before we removed the magical dampening spells, I shudder to think what your magical reserve will be like now. The shift in your magic is probably why you feel drained' said Snape.

Hermione nodded taking all the information in like a sponge would do with water.

'We want to tell you about the compulsion charms placed on you if you think you are up to hearing it' said Remus.

'Please tell me' said Hermione softly.

'We found a total of four charms on you, all added at various points in your life, these spells would have needed to be replenished overtime so we're guessing that the majority of them would have been placed during your time at Hogwarts and replenished when needed' said Lucius.

'The first we found was of an orange colour, it was to ensure that you believed all that Ron told you and to make sure you'd turn a blind eye to all his endeavours and moments of bad behaviour' said Remus.

'The second, also orange in colour was to make sure you became weak minded and obedient' said Neville.

'The third was a charm to make you forget all your current friends. We suppose that this was so the caster could gain ultimate control over you, without friend's you'd be completely dependent upon them' said Harry.

'And the last was for you to forget Draco after the breakup and the love you held for him' said Lucius.

Draco who had remained quiet so far decided it was time he spoke up.

'Why did you go with him after graduation? Why did you make that decision? Wasn't what we had good enough? Couldn't we have worked it out?' he asked, his voice rising with each question.

Hermione who had managed to stay through the information with a clear mind flinched back onto the bed she was in when she heard Draco's words 'I don't know' she whispered 'I have no memory of the decision. Everything is blurred, old memories are fighting with new ones and I don't understand them yet' she said.

It seemed that the answer given wasn't good enough for Draco as he stormed out of the room despite the calls from Hermione and Narcissa to bring him back.

'My son has always been overly dramatic' said Lucius lightly, yet you could see the worry in his eyes.

'You'll feel drained for a while, until your magic settles. Please don't try to use any magic for a while and you're still on bed rest!' commanded Snape.

'I've prepared some potions to help you' said Neville 'I'll leave Luna in charge of administrating them. Oh and don't try to force the memories, they'll come back in drips and drabs'.

'Get some rest' said Narcissa lightly patting Hermione's arm as she stood up to leave, 'once you're better we'll go shopping for some clothes and necessities' she added.

'Why would I need clothes? What happened to my stuff?' she asked.

'Oh sweetie, you didn't arrive with anything other than your wand and I'm sorry to say that the flat you shared with that Weasley boy has gone up in smoke, there is nothing left there' said Narcissa.

Hermione looked shocked at yet another piece of information and merely nodded her consent to shopping as she watched all but Luna file out of the room. She turned to the blonde witch and watched her flit around the room for several minutes.

'Why are they so caring?' she asked quietly 'I do not feel I deserve it'.

Luna looked over at her friend 'just because you were gone doesn't mean we stopped caring' she paused 'for the brightest witch of her age you aren't acting very bright'.

Hermione snorted 'I think I lost that title three years ago don't you'.

'Now you're just being childish' said Luna.

'Sorry'.

'Apology accepted. I know you're feeling out of sorts now but I know you'll find yourself among all the havoc' said Luna.

'See that's what I'm afraid of, what if when I find myself she's not me anymore' said Hermione.

'That's the problem you aren't thinking right, you need to stop looking for who you once were and start looking for who you will be now' said Luna.

'Easier said than done' said Hermione pouting slightly.

'Whoever said life was easy?' replied Luna.

Hermione glared at her friend, though she found Luna extremely insightful, she sometimes didn't appreciate the truth she spoke.

'My advice, don't think too hard and just concentrate on getting better'.

Hermione nodded slowly. She then dutifully drank the potions Luna handed to her – though they didn't taste nice – and as Luna left, she tried to relax and not think of anything. However after a few minutes of restless slumber she realised that trying to make sure her mind remained blank was a harder task than she anticipated.

Her mind latched on to the last thing she could remember. Yet it no longer remained the jumbled mess from before, it was now clearer and more detailed.

_Work was, as always disappointing and underachieving. Her big hopes of climbing the Ministry ladder to the point where she could actually change laws hadn't happened. To a certain extent she'd hoped her contributions during the war would earn her something at the Ministry but it hadn't._

_At first she didn't mind the hard work, it kept her busy and could be quite rewarding but as time went on she lost all her hope and all the excitement she'd had for the job. It simply became but another disappointment in life._

_That night when she returned home, she'd had an awful day at work and though Ron and her hadn't been seeing eye to eye recently, she'd been looking forward to spending the evening with him. _

_As she entered the flat they shared she was thinking of what she should cook for dinner that night when she'd heard the unmistakable sound of people moving around. Her first though had been that a burglar had broken into the flat because Ron had said he'd be out all day on business. However there was no mistaking his voice._

_She thought perhaps that he'd come home to surprise her but when she heard the sounds of another person she realised that he was not alone. Anger and rage boiled up inside her as she saw the two of them going at it. As her mind tried to make sense of all that was happening, she suddenly remembered all the other incidents that had happened and wondered how she had forgotten them and how she hadn't done anything about them._

_Then she got angry and retaliated, she just didn't expect him to fight back. The whore Ron had been entertaining had long gone by the time the first slap came around. It was a surprise to Hermione but the subsequent attacks worried her, without her wand in her hand she found it hard to defend herself. As further cuts appeared on her forearms she started to realise that Ron was getting some sadistic pleasure out of this and she fought harder to escape. When she felt something sharp and heavy hit the back of her head and felt the blood start to trickle down her neck she really started to panic. She felt herself get dizzy and her vision started to blur. Next thing she knew her magic had shot out draining her instantly and everything went black._

Hermione came out of her memories to find tears rolling down her face and Harry who sat besides her holding her hand. He said nothing as she tried to compose herself and just held onto her hand in comforting support.

When she finally managed to calm herself down, Harry began to talk.

'You know at first I was mad at you when you went off with Ron and dropped off the face of the planet' he said.

'I'm sorry' she whispered.

'Don't be. There was always some part of me that didn't think your behaviour was normal. The biggest mistake I ever made was becoming friends with Ron on the train to Hogwarts. If only I knew then what we do now I could have saved us a lot of trouble' said Harry.

Hermione glanced up at her friend, surprised by the level of guilt he was expressing. She wondered if she should point out that without Ron's cruel words and the troll incident, her friendship with Harry probably wouldn't have formed.

'You know I am sorry for everything that's happened. To think we all wanted peaceful lives after the war yet it seems you haven't had that' he said in anguish.

'Harry, this is not your fault, it is just something that happened. It will get better, for all of us' she said softly.

'I swear I'll get to the bottom of this. I'll find out who's responsible for this and make sure they are taken to justice' growled Harry.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Harry Potter.

* * *

**Chapter Four**

**DRACO P.O.V**

Draco was so mad at himself. When she'd been unconscious he'd been so worried about her and when he learnt that she had all those spells laid upon her he'd feared for her life. Yet when she'd woken up, instead of feeling relief and joy he felt anger and rage.

Everything about their time together, their breakup and the years spent apart had come rushing back. Even though there was now a reason to at least explain some of what had happened, he still couldn't understand how she could have thrown it all away. That's why he'd stormed out of the room, he couldn't bear to look upon her beautiful face any longer when he knew she was no longer his. Even now the pain of what they lost haunted him.

*-..-*

_The months after the war had been hard but everyone had jumped at the chance to return to Hogwarts when the offer presented itself. They needed some sense of normality in their lives. As would be expected Draco wasn't exactly everyone's favourite cup of tea. However as the year progressed things changed._

_The biggest change that came was between him and Hermione. Of course people taunted their change in relationship and many gossiped about the cliché of a Slytherin and a Gryffindor getting together but they didn't care for they were blissfully happy._

_Hermione made Draco a better person, made him feel like he belonged and that his past no longer mattered. While he made sure Hermione remained grounded, felt accepted and wasn't too intense. _

_The day of graduation Draco was so nervous. Not knowing what else to do he'd spoken to Harry and had been reassured that he was making the right decision. _

_When he'd asked her for a word in private she'd seemed a little different but he'd put it down to the nerves of graduation. She looked ravishing in her dress and gown and just looking at her had made his palms sweat. _

_'__Hermione' he said boldly 'this past year with you has made me indescribably happy. With you around I have become a better version of myself and I don't ever want to lose the feeling I have when you're near'._

_He knew he sounded soppy but he didn't care. He would cross oceans for this witch. He gazed lovingly into her eyes as he got down on one knee. _

_'__Will you marry me?' he asked._

_She looked at him panicked, this wasn't supposed to be her reaction and Draco suddenly felt uneasy. He remained on bended knee yet she still hadn't said anything, something wasn't right._

_'__Are you ok?' he asked._

_'__I can't marry you' she blurted._

_'__W-why not?' he stuttered. _

_'__I can't be with you anymore, what we had was fun but it was never going to last. Now schools over I've found someone more worthwhile' she said bitchily. _

_Draco stood up furious at her behaviour and words._

_'__Are you telling me this whole year has meant nothing to you?' _

_'__Yes' she replied._

_'__Who is it?' asked Draco his teeth clenched._

_'__I'm sorry?' asked Hermione._

_'__This worthwhile somebody, who is it?'_

_'__Ronald Weasley'._

_'__You're fucking kidding me! After everything you're crawling back to him!' exploded Draco._

_'__He can give me things you can't' said Hermione._

_'__Like what?'_

_'__Stability, familiarity' she said. _

_'__Those are shit reasons' said Draco._

_'__I'm sorry I have to go, Ron's waiting'._

_Draco watched her walk out of his life and his heart, which had healed in her presence, cracked once more. _

*-..-*

'This is useless' growled Hermione.

Severus merely rolled his eyes. She'd been trying to overachieve in a frustratingly annoying manner for some time now. The snarky potions master's cruel behaviour was close to bubbling over the surface, the only thing keeping him in check was Lucius – who had more patience than him with the witch.

After a full week in bed, Hermione had finally been allowed to walk around and practice her magic. Being so used to being able to cast a spell on her first try, her increased magic was causing problems for her. Spells that were once easy were now dangerous due to the high level of magic she now had. Her wand would malfunction, the spell would go wrong or even worse nothing would happen at all.

The only silver lining to her magical woes was that in the week she'd been out of bed, she hadn't seen hide nor hair of Draco. She took it as a blessing because even if there was a small part of her that longed to see him, the bigger more controlling part of her wouldn't know what to say and would rather save the embarrassment she would sure feel if they did meet.

So in ever the fashion of someone trying to avoid something, she pushed it to the back of him mind and focused on getting her magic back to normal, it was something she was increasingly finding an 'easier said than done' moment.

During her last year of school Hermione had begun an apprenticeships programme in both Charms and Transfiguration. She'd managed to earn her level two in both field and had been but one level away from earning her Masters. It would have taken her a further two years to gain the Master title but she'd been willing to put in the effort needed to achieve the title. That had been before her intelligent mind and goals had been locked away. Now back in her own mind Hermione was determined not to be stopped again, and as such was probably overexerting herself with excessive magical practice.

You can imagine that this was aggravating Hermione quite a lot. She needed something to stabilise her but was getting nothing from her magic. She was also annoyed that she was still residing at Malfoy Manor. She knew from Narcissa that her flat was no more but she'd have preferred being able to locate a new property and move into it. She didn't understand everyone's need to look after her, to Hermione it just seemed like they were being overprotective and ignoring her independence. Poor Hermione didn't realise that she could be in potential danger from Ron, who was still on the run.

She couldn't believe that her flat was no more, it wasn't so much that she'd lost all her clothes and furniture, it was more that she'd lost all the memories and mementos. There were photos in that flat that she'd never be able to get back and a thousand different memories – granted most of those memories would be better forgotten – but it was still part of her life that she could no longer visit. She felt like she was imposing herself, like a guest who had outstayed her welcome – not that she had, Hermione's magnificent mind was just looking for a way out. She knew they'd never let her leave until they deemed her to be 100% better.

Malfoy Manor had been rather busy that week, everyone seemed to be popping in and out at all hours of the day. Hermione couldn't tell if this was a regular occurrence or something that was new.

After failing to cast a simple 'Wingardium Leviosa' spell, Hermione threw down her wand in frustration. Seeing the anger present on her face, it was that moment that both Lucius and Severus excused themselves from the room, intent on doing research into Hermione's trouble with magic.

Hermione was still having trouble processing everything, she put on a brave face and carried on because she was afraid that if she stopped and took stock of everything that had happened that she might not start moving again. It was much easier to go through the motions rather than think of anything that had happened. Don't get her wrong, she was furious that someone had so badly abused her mind and magic and when she found them she would make them pay absolutely. But for the time being, if she could avoid thinking about it then she most certainly would.

As Hermione paced the room with a scowl on her face, she was interrupted by a surprise visit from Kingsley. Usually Hermione loved a visit from Kingsley and today was no exception, however Kingsley's face was serious and grave when he arrived, leading Hermione to fear the worst.

'Kingsley, how exciting to see you, I trust you are well' she said.

'I am most well thank you Hermione, though I'm afraid this is not a social call' he said.

'Whatever do you mean?' asked Hermione as Harry walked into the room.

'Good morning Kingsley' said Harry.

'Morning Harry. I wonder if you would be so kind as to go fetch Severus and Lucius. I'd rather deal with their anger at the same time'.

The remark made Hermione worry that something bad had happened that would greatly affect the people she cared about. She couldn't bear the thought of anyone being hurt more than they already had. Though she'd only had a heart to heart with Harry, she wanted to make sure she got round to having a one-on-one chat with everyone else. Even if it was just to clear the air and even if it meant putting up with Severus' behaviour alone.

Harry returned quite quickly with Severus and Lucius, either they hadn't gone far or Harry's explanation of Kingsley's presence was cause for concern.

'Kingsley' acknowledged Lucius.

'Lucius, Severus' said Kingsley by way of greeting.

'To what do we owe this morning visit?' asked Lucius.

At face value the light and dark wizards appeared indifferent to the current situation. However if you looked closer you'd be able to see the tightening of their fists and the locking of their jaws.

'As you know we have been searching for Ron since Hermione arrived. Given his record for spell work we thought we would have caught him by now. However he has managed to escape our clutches. As a group of Aurors were tracking Ron last night, they came across an area that matched highly with Ron's magical signature' Kingsley stopped talking and opened the file he was holding. Taking out pictures he gave them to Severus, Lucius and Harry to look at.

'The girl is named Lisa Hurtwood, she was, as far as anyone can tell, a normal person. Her magical signature was low, she was a borderline squib. AS you can see there are similarities between Lisa Hurtwood and our Hermione'.

'What do you mean?' asked a panicked Hermione.

'You look alike' said Severus.

Hermione made a grab for the photos but they were kept out of her reach. No one wanted her to see the gruesome pictures, she'd only blame herself for what had happened.

'The girl was found with three broken ribs, a broken leg, a fractured arm and several lacerations'.

'And you believe Ron did all that?' asked Hermione mortified.

'It's what the evidence points towards' said Kingsley gravely.

The silence in Malfoy Manor that afternoon was deafening, when Kingsley left, Lucius and Severus proceeded to tell others of what they had learnt. Everyone had their own thoughts and feelings on what had transpired and none of them painted Ron in a promising light.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: ** I don't own Harry Potter - sad times.

**AN: **I know it's been a lot time since I posted [sorry about that, life has been busy] - I'm now away for two weeks on holiday, so updates will still be very slow.

**Chapter Five**

Narcissa Malfoy was many things but she was rarely out of control. Since Hermione had descended upon them Narcissa had felt incredibly out of control and suffered with not being able to do anything to help.

Narcissa was not shy in her opinions, she would not settle for anything less than Hermione being a part of her family. She had got close to Hermione when she had been dating Draco and it had been difficult when Hermione had severed all connection to them. Narcissa still had her ladies group, consisting of: Andromeda, Luna, Andrea Flint, Eloise James-Pucey and Serena Nott. Still she missed the companionship and unconditional friendship she had with Hermione. When one was born into money and power and then married into even more, it was quite hard to make real friends. One never knew who was being genuine and who wasn't. With Hermione though she knew she had a real friend.

She'd been horrified at the news of that poor witch being found. She shuddered to think what the parents of the poor girl were going through. Despite everything Narcissa could see that both Hermione and Harry were struggling with the fact that Ron could be behind it.

Narcissa had decided to take Hermione out for the day to show her around 'The Grange' and fit her with a new wardrobe – since she lost everything after the flat she shared with Ron went up in smoke. She knew that several males would protest at having Hermione and herself out in public without an escort, so she proposed that they take Eppy with them. Having seen Eppy's dramatic arrival and knowing enough about both elf and goblin culture, Narcissa knew they were in safe hands.

She grinned when she thought of Eppy who had been Hermione's assistant at work. The dear little fellow had managed to politely manipulate Hermione into allowing him to bind himself to her and her future family. Narcissa suspected that Hermione didn't fully understand what the bond stood for but she realised that it was an ingenious venture for Eppy to pursue. Eppy had obviously sensed that there was untapped power in Hermione and sought to bind himself to her before anyone else did. Her kind nature towards him had probably helped to cement his need to bond in the first place, as such, he would always remain the highest elf under Hermione's command despite how many future elves she may employ.

Narcissa really wanted to show Hermione around all of Draco's businesses but knew that they didn't have enough time to see everything and shop and she didn't want to shove Draco's success in Hermione's face. She decided on showing Hermione 'The Grange' because it was Draco's finest achievement and the business he was most proud of.

'The Grange' was a large modern building set on two floors with white walls and large glass windows. Despite the modern feel of the building the overall atmosphere was calm and tranquil. The building was set within the trees, there were plenty of colourful plants, seating areas and koi ponds.

The name of the building stood grandly above the main doors, gleaming in the sunlight. Hermione had yet to notice the name of the building.

'It's beautiful' whispered Hermione in awe.

'Isn't it just. This place wildly surpasses St. Mungos in patients, staff and service. Draco named it 'The Grange'' said Narcissa.

'What?'

'My dear are you alright, you've gone rather pale' said Narcissa concerned about the fading colour upon Hermione's face.

Hermione was having a moment where she wasn't sure if her brain was still attached to her body. It was as if she had been transported back to that time when the word 'The Grange' had meant so much to her. She felt the tears pool in the corners of her eyes as she realised that he'd still remembered the importance of that name.

The meaning of 'The Grange' was one of the things she could never remove from her mind, during her time with Ron it had been a lifeline, a forgotten dream that she couldn't quite remember but that she knew meant something important; a reminder that her life could be more than it was.

'The Grange' had been what Hermione and Draco were going to call the house they moved into. They'd talked away countless nights going through what their house would look like and always, it was called 'The Grange'. Well, it seemed that without her, Draco had gone on to build 'The Grange'. It wasn't a family home – that would have hurt Hermione – but it was a building and one that Hermione was proud to know was called 'The Grange'.

"He named it for us" she whispered.

Narcissa waited till she saw Hermione come back down to earth and chose to ignore Hermione's whispered comment. She gently placed Hermione's arm in the crook of her own and slowly walked her inside. Though Narcissa had heard what Hermione had whispered, looking at the girl before her, she couldn't fully understand the importance behind the name 'The Grange'.

The inside of the building matched the beautiful structure of the outside. Narcissa meant it when she said that 'The Grange' supposed St Mungos. Here there were no plain white walls or imposing people loitering around. Here every room was painted a bright colour and the children's ward had beautiful murals lining the walls. The building had three floor, each signifying something different. Depending on what ailed you, you'd then get sent to the appropriate floor. Of course people couldn't go around calling out floor numbers, so each floor had its own name.

The ground floor was called 'The Orchard' and the wards within it were each named after a type of fruit tree. The second floor was called 'The Forest' and each ward there was named after a famous forest from around the world. Lastly the top floor was called 'The Monument' and the wards there were named after famous monuments from around the world.

Narcissa watched as Hermione walked around, absorbing everything she saw with an awe inspired expression. As Narcissa explained how 'The Grange' came to be, Hermione seemed to drink up her words like a starved woman and asked her question after question that Narcissa was only too happy to answer.

Her own life and achievements looked non-existent in comparison. He'd burnt brightly in the sky as he built his empire and her light had long since died. She felt tears gather at her eyes but refused to let them fall.

"He managed to do all of this in three years?" she asked.

"Well he had help but yes, three years. IT's been wonderful watching this place grow" said Narcissa.

"He's done so well for himself" she murmured.

"He had a good teacher who showed him what was important in life" replied Narcissa.

Hermione ignored the comment "this cannot be his only business, there are more I assume" she said.

"I didn't want you to feel bad or undermine your own achievements" said Narcissa.

Hermione snorted, she had no achievements "we don't have to see them but can you at least tell me about the others?" she asked.

Narcissa smiled at Hermione's attitude "he went into business with Severus and Neville to create 'Apothadream'. Harry and Draco bought many shares in muggle companies and then Draco opened his own business combining muggle items with magic, along with his friend's Blaise Zabini and Daphne Greengrass. Draco and Harry opened a series of private Wizarding clubs together and he also opened a bookshop that houses rare tombs with Remus Lupin.

"Wow" said Hermione "he's done everything he said he would".

"He wanted to be a better man, someone you'd be proud of" said Narcissa.

Hermione nodded "Can I tell you something, in confidence?" she asked quietly.

Narcissa nodded, leaning close to her "I don't feel safe in my mind anymore. I'm afraid that every new piece of knowledge I receive will be taken away from me" she said quietly.

Narcissa pulled the trembling witch to her side "now dear, I cannot claim to know how you are feeling but you have a horde of great witches and wizards ready to help you. Before your stubborn nature comes out, they love you for you, they aren't pitying you or judging you but you do mean a lot to them. You're family to all of them. Yes they've created lives for themselves but you have always been the glue that kept them together, the missing person. They all want to help you and get to the bottom of this" said Narcissa passionately.

Narcissa looked down at Hermione and seeing the state she was in, recognised her mistake "sorry dear, I rambled off there. Let's go get you some new clothes, maybe even a new image? That's bound to make you happy, even for a little while".

Though Hermione had never previously had much interest in shopping, she recognised that a bit of shopping therapy could do her a whirl of good. Besides she knew from memory that Narcissa was an excellent shopper. Indeed when they floo'd straight into a post French boutique, Hermione knew she was in for a treat. She also knew from distant memories that when it came to clothes, it was best not to argue with Narcissa.

Which was why, four hours later, the duo floo'd straight back to Malfoy Manor with: fifteen dresses, five pairs of jeans, six skirts, twenty different tops, several jumpers and coats and a multitude of accessories.

That evening, Hermione was deemed well enough to stay up for a couple of hours with the other adults present. Even though she had been up and about most of the day, the others were still rather protective of her. Narcissa had previously told her all about the business ventures of Draco and the others, so Hermione found herself feeling quite surprised that they all had time to hang around.

Narcissa had insisted that Hermione change into something more comfortable and insisted on having a buffet style dinner spread laid out in the warm sitting room. It seemed very anti-pureblood but everyone seemed to be having fun. As everyone chatted, Hermione enjoyed a few moments of quietness.

"How come you never made it into the Ministry Hermione? I would have thought that would have been a dream of yours" said Remus.

"The Ministry offered me a job as an Auror, to honour me for my part in the war but I didn't want to travel down that road. I wanted to make my own decisions and earn my job. However it seems as though I snubbed the Ministry in declining their offer and any future attempt I made at trying to get a job within the Ministry was terminated" said Hermione.

"Idiots" murmured Harry.

"It doesn't matter, I ended up working in a muggle library for a while and then several odd jobs. Ron didn't want me to get a full-time job but wanted me out of the house at the same time" she said.

"If you wanted to have a job now, what would you do?" asked Lucius.

"I'm not even sure" replied Hermione.

The conversation lulled as they all began eating and once the food had been consumed, Hermione felt her energy lagging. Despite her determination to be involved in the conversations around her, she couldn't help but succumb to the sleep that wanted to take her away from the present.


End file.
